The use of thermoplastic elastomers is developing rapidly into a major success story, both as replacement for vulcanised rubber and also for totally new applications. Several important factors are driving developments forward such as legislation on recycling materials in cars and electrical/electronic goods, and continued growth of soft-touch applications.

To meet these demands there are many technical developments in hand by TPE manufacturers and compounders such as greater thermal, oxidative and weathering stability; softer grades of premium TPEs; improved properties such as resilience, oil resistance, flammability, smoke emission, fogging, adhesion and transparency; foamable grades and improved co-processibility.New types of dynamically vulcanised TPEs with improved properties, melt mixing as a low cost route to new types of TPE, and metallocene catalysed polyolefin materials are examples of developments pushing the boundaries even further.